Le Woody Brune | Pizza Port Solana Beach

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User Ratings & Reviews

Reviews by Overlord:

Huge thanks to Jerz for hosting an awesome tasting, and for so many generous beer connoisseurs who made the event possible.

Pours an orange amber. 1-2 inches of white, big bubbling foam.

Smells like metallic vinous/vinegar-y notes, and ... malted cherries.

Taste is surprisingly sweet. A definite sweet/sour cherry backing with a bunch of vinegar and grapeskins n' tannins. Is this an oude brune? What immediately came to mind is Cuvee de Tomme on steroids. A bit of wood/oak backing.

More User Reviews:

Poured into my glass a nice cloudy brown color with a big cragly foamy tan head atop the brew. Looks nice in the glass as lots of lacing is left behind as the head falls. Aromas are upfront with sour fruits, cherry and berries predominently with a slight vinegar-esque sting. Funky, musty notes mesh with underlying woody tones. Quite nice and very interesting.

First sip brings a tart berry infused light maltiness with notes of sour cherries that leave only a slight sweetness. Puckering, vinegar acidity along with big brett notes follow on the way down and invade the mouth. Finishes clean with plenty of earthy, old wood notes as well. Another very nice wild ale from Pizza Port.

Mouthfeel has a spritzy, champagne carbonation. Fairly light, it goes down easy as the bubbles dance across the palate. I really enjoy these wild ales and this one is no exception. I would love to have a 750ml of this to enjoy at home...the drinkability may only be hindered by the acidity..so be prepared. A fine brew that has me looking forward to the bottle of Le Woody in my cellar.

Originally reviewed November 26, 2006. Poured at Port Brewing Company. Clean aroma of dripping wet Rainer cherries over a bright, crisp acidity, shining in the noonday sun. Pour of heavily florid light mahogany, tawny with orange edges and rim of whitish. Flavor is an amazing amalgamation of tartness, wild woodiness and the sweet sugary skins of fresh cherries and their respective pits. I wish that I could have spent more time with this beer, but as a special treat presented by Tomme at the tasting bar, it was not possible. What I did gather from the beer was an incredible refined quality that held up there even with Alexander. However, I though that at times the acetic acid showed through a little heavy and washed things away, leaving me pining for the incredible cherry flavors that it dished up front. However, this is not to undermine the fact that this beer carries everything that it should as a Flemish Sour. Fantastic!

RB's Footbalm brought this to a tasting a while back... Wanted to get these notes in before I begin reviewing the ruckus from over the weekend. Thanks a ton Eric... This was a top-tier brew and one that I know I NEVER would have had a chance to try without your generosity.

Pours a cloudy brown with a lite tan head.... nice lacing and retention... If this as more "clear", it would have easily been a 4.

Nose is pretty amazing mash-up of bretty tart cherry with some minor acetic notes pushing ahead... more lactic elements show as the bottle opens and really warms up. Fantastic... with warmth... wood shows and so does something that I can only describe as cinnamon.

Flavor is better (but not enough for a 5) .... bright full round cherry combines with a fairly pronounced a vinegar quality ... it is never a "burning" vinegar bomb, it just adds alot to the complexities.. lactic notes are more muted than expected, but still very present ... fruity tannins with warmth .... brett woolen socks... Good carbonation, but not overly done...

This was way better than my above notes show.... Huge applause to Footbalm for such an amazing brew.

Thanks to moejuck (thebaldwizard on RB) for this. Received in a Christmas-time trade, kept upright and in the cellar until March 26th, 2011 when it was brought out as the 7th beer of the tasting. Split 4 ways with treyrab, dyan, and bucketboy. No gushing, but happy this was allowed to settle, as there was, indeed, a ton of yeast at the bottom of the bottle.

Burgundy in color, there is very ample carbonation. Fizzy and fine, it produces a full one-finger cap of head. There is fair retention, but for the most part, this pretty much dissipates leaving a ring around the glass and no lacing.

There is a light acetic character that greets me in the aroma, surprising, as that will usually take over a beer pretty quickly once it gets going. There are mainly aromas of lactic citrusy sourness and a balanced funk. There are some very strong and compelling berry fruity characteristics - strawberries, raspberries, and others. Also, there is a touch of vanilla. On the palate, the acetic sourness goes to the back, as the lactic and funky components shine and balance each other out. The fruity flavors come through with some fruit skin tannins that complement the berry flavors beautifully. There is a spicy oakiness in the middle, again complementing the fruit well.

Silky and light on the palate, the carbonation is so light that it makes the beer almost evaporate off my tongue. Very good overall, this is a great American sour if you can track it down.

Confirmed with xlperro that this was probably brewed at Solana but I'm entering under this location in case they decide to release it in bottles again...
Thanks to egajdzis for opening this.
Appears a hazy, orange toned brown with a small, off-white head that fades into a mild collar.
Smell is oaky, with sour cherries, wild yeast, doughy bread, and light caramel.
Taste is an acidic, sweet, vinous version of the mentioned aromas with the cherry flavor, wild tartness, and sweet caramel coming into full swing.
Mouthfeel is medium bodied, acidic, sour, and settling on the middle of the tongue before dying out into semi-dryness.

***Gusher warning - at least Eric did a great job of catching most of it before it erupted all over my bar!***

Poured a deep and cloudy reddish / amber color with a small sized off white head. Lots of small floaters. Aromas of cherries, vinous, light wood, yeast, berries and a light funkiness. Tastes of cherries and wood. Cherry pie all the way. Semi-tart finish. Lively and fizzy body that I didn't particularly care for.

S - A bit light but very nice. Blond base with an overlay strawberry, strawberry vinegar, gentle funk, touch of sulfury oxidation that doesn't take away at all. Fruit tones down the funk. General tropical fruit (papaya, guava).

T - Much like the nose with gentle acetic and lactic backing up the fruit even more. The lactic presides over the strawberry, smooth strawberry vinegar, blueberry skin tannins. The oak is soft, lending a clean spice in the mid-palate and finish. Faint butter lends a helping hand to smooth the strawberry and tropical fruit over the surface of my mouth as I swallow. Superbly subtle and nuanced, restrained, refined, and gentle. Score goes up because of the restraint and subtlety.

O - Lovely. The mouthfeel and balance of mascerated fruit, soft vinegar, lactic acid, and gently spiced oak made me finish my glass sooner than I wished (glad I've had a chance to enjoy this again since the time of this original notes review).

Thanks to Chris for this one. I've had this a couple times before, but never got to take notes on it. Finally had a good pour to do so with.

A: The bottle is excessively carbonated which required some bleeding and of the pressure by loosening the cap slowly. But eventually, we have a pour that is a brownish/amber color with a large off-white head.

S: Immediately you get the sour cherry aromas along with plenty of oak. There is a nice sweet malt character underneath, very reminiscent of an Oud Bruin/Flanders Red. Quite musty with a lot of wine, too.

T: Plenty of sour cherry and cherry pie flavor going on here. There's a lot of tartness as well, partially from a vinegar component. Not as much sweetness as on the nose and a bit more toward the dry side.

M: The body is medium with a very high/lively carbonation.

D: One of the better American sour beers I've ever had and it has held up amazingly well over the last several years.

Brad is like Santa, he really brings the good stuff to tastings. He helped knock off a LONG TIME want of mine. Cheers, man!

Hazy ruby red with a thin white head that recedes to nothing rather quick. Decent.

The nose is quite fantastic, rich and complex. Brown sugar, vanilla, vinegar, oak. Very complex. Cherry skins, ripe berries and a buttery Chardonnay character that reminds me of Depuration, this beer is mildly funky.

The palate opens beautifully tart with some acetic acid, strawberries, cherries, brown sugar and vanilla. The acidity brings to mind a fruit-forward strawberry vinaigrette. A little oak is present in the back, the funk character is quite low. Tannins are low, and this definitely shows some vinous character.

A touch overcarbonated, this beer is medium-light in body with a long-lasting delicate finish with a blend of sugar, vinegar and a clean lactic sourness. Pretty insanely drinkable, this!

**Edit 26 March 2011**

First beer of the second day of debauchery, thanks for sharing this, Dan!
Better retention and appearance than last time. The nose is fruit with cherries, strawberries and a mild spiciness. The palate's grown a lot sourer with a bright, fruity tartness. Tannins and a sharp acetic note are present. The tannins are more fruit skin like, rather than an oak-based tannin. Carbonation is fine, making this light and airy. The mid-palate has some oak spiciness. Not as much brown sugar as before, this is a little more acetic and strangely, less lactic.
4/4.5/4/4.5/4

Appearance: Orange-brown with a musky turbidity. Head was beige with a hint of vanilla. Excellent conditioning from the tap, thick head was resilient and the carbonation was high but controlled. Good looks.

Nose: The best part for me, whilst it was obvious that I had different interpretations from others as we discussed this one, as I got lots of stinking warm freshly expelled Horse manure, you know the hot steaming piles of green- brown stuff that has straw sticking out it, well it smelled like that to me. Behind this a fighting Oak stained Brett dominated skeleton is the backbone. Funky with a real farmyard aroma, more horse shit than blanket.

Taste: I was immediately taken in by the dryness with this right from the off. Middle is fruity with some puckering acidity that allowed what appeared to be a sour cherry tingle high on malt vinegar with soaked oak vat smoothies thrown in the very dry finish. Lingering acidity was too sharp for some I heard, but surely for me an integral part of this offering that adds to its charm - though I think it is a little too acidic given reflection, age may defy this aspect.

Mouthfeel: Showering carbonation is tight and sprightly on the tongue and cheeks. Expansive volumes of conditioning once released add depth and a massive feel in the mouth as it fizzes and releases all the funky flavors.

Drinkability: A top performer that begs to be imbibed. A solid libation which impressed me. Dont be fooled by the Brune aspect, this is a very good American Wild Ale with lots of raw lambic character a hint of sour cherry.

Overall: I forgot that this was different to the regular PP Le Woody until I got to taste someone elses sample, I misread the Beer List and though it was just the standard (sic) Le Woody on sale. So Im glad I didnt get to overlook this one, damned fine stuff. I really do wish they would Bottle this version .hopefully with recent changes at Pizza Port, maybe they will, Im sure this would really develop given some aging.

Received a bottle in a trade with kingkong and I opened it for Mike's second annual pre Toronado Anniversay Beer Tasting. This bottle was shockingly good. It was bursting with fruit (raspberry) and was a great drinking experience. I'm upping the score in mouthfeel and smell +.5.

7/17/2010

Bottle shared by javib458, thanks! This was a long time want. The bottle opens with a gush and continues gushing through several glasses, but the glassware was on hand and not a drop was wasted. The beer is ruddy reddish brown with a big beige head.

The aroma is of tart dark cherries with a moderate lactic quality and a healthy dose of acetic acid. Brett contributes a wet leather character, and oak is evident.

The flavor is lightly tart dark and a touch of sweetness with big lactic notes, a low acetic character, and oak. Brett is musty. The finish is booze macerated dark cherries. The beer has an upper moderate level of carbonation, creating a spritzy moutfeel, and it's medium bodied.